Overview
Steptoe’s latest win for BMG Rights Management US was featured in a Law360 article titled “Top 7 Copyright Rulings of 2017: A Midyear Review.” Steptoe’s case received a nod for a Virginia federal judge’s February ruling that ordered Cox Communications to pay more than $8 million in legal fees on top of $25 million in copyright damages it already owes in a lawsuit over illegal downloading. The judge said companies like BMG, which sued Cox for allegedly not doing enough to stop piracy on its network, should be “rewarded for facing up against willful infringers with deep pockets."
In December 2015, a federal court jury in Virginia returned a $25 million verdict in favor of BMG, finding Cox guilty of willful contributory copyright infringement for enabling its subscribers’ illegal downloading of music created by BMG song writers.
The full article can be read at Law360 (subscription required).
